St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-12-25
While They Numbered Thir-
teen Thousand, Four Hun
drei and Fifty-Eight.
No Traces of a Boom, and the
Market in a Most Healthy
Condition.

iefCSN essSSss59' or"1 IineS Of t,S9da
and for which the reputation of the
city is so well established. About a
year ago, when towns like Los Angeles,
Wichita, Kansas City and Omaha were
rioting in what is termed "a real estate
beom,'' it was predicted that st. Paul
would soon experience like disaster.
The theory was based upon the fact
that this city was developing more rap
idly than any other commercial center
on the continent, and that it would,
therefore. naturally attract an amount
of outside capital that would enable
operators to bring about purely spec
ulative market, such as had been crea-
ted in the cities above referred to. An
ticipating this result, many persons
wholly unfit. either from lack of knOwl-
edge of the business or responsibility,
opened real estate offices" and talked
"boom." Every possible or con-
ceivable improvement was al
legged for this or that locality,
and considerable property changed
hands upon purely unreliable and Wis,
iOnary schemes. This condition lasted
from about February Is to May 1. The
best business men in the city, including
the oldest and most reliable real estate
houses, looked with actual alarm upon
the situation. knowing that undue infla-
ton of prices meant certain cessation of
the erection of business blocks, homes
and factorieS-in fact, Stoppage of the
city's growth. Then it was that the inA
fuence of st, Paul'S conservatism began
to be felt. The ''hurrah" of the
'boomer'' was extinguished by the
quiet, cOmmOn-sense ''gO slow" of the
oldest and best business minds of the
city.
TIFF RESTTTT
What was the result? A quiet (com-
paratively1 market during the summer
and fall, but a restored confidence that
is worth to-day to st. Paul thousand
times more than the amount of money
that might have been brought in had the
boom prevailed.
Now we can look the general situation
In the face, with positive certainty that
st. Pauls unparalleled prosperity not
only has not been jeopardiZed, but that
q decided impetus has been given to it
by the knowledge Eastern, Southern and
foreign capital has acquired of the alb
solute safety of the city's methods,
guaranteeing steady development and
consequent advancement for years in
all realty values. Even within the past
two weeks outside correspondence in
relation to st. Paul investments has in
creased so materially that many real es-
tate concerns that were at first disposed
to countenance ''bOOm" methods now
see how much more desirable it is to
save and encourage the goose that lays
the golden egg, rather than to destroy
the source of supply-aS must have re-
suited had fictitious prices prevailed
throughout the entire year.
The fruits of St. PauFS conservatism
can only be realized by comparison of
the situation here with that of cities
which have been so unfortunate as to
care only for immediate profits. At
this writing st. Paul has, by the most
careful systems of estimating, at least
$4,000 population. 1t is certainly
much larger city than Kansas City, three
times as large as Los Angeles, and has
nearly twice the business and people of
Omaha. Over eleven millions of dollars
have been expended in building opera
tons during the year; more than 800
passenger trains arrive and depart at
the union depot daily: and scores upon
scores of new manufacturing concerns
have been added to the industries of
the city since Maya record that
neither of the abOve-named towns
even pretends to equal: and yet
the best business property in the city,
opposite the Hotel Ryan, on Sixth, Sew
enth and Robert streets, can be bought
at llOul 900 " S1.AbO DCl 1IOHG 1OOO-
property that similarly situated In
Kansas City would be held at $1,000 to
s., $500 per front foot, and from 81, 800 to
g., 800 in Omaha and Los Angeles. 1t
does not require the mind of financier
to at once determine that, whereas st.
Paul is a larger. more rapidly growing
and far greater city prOSpectively than
either of the towns compared with, this
is the city in which to make permanent
investments: and it is as certain as fate
that here will concentrate during the
next five years, is has resulted in the
past five, a greater
AMOUNT OF MONEYED OUTLAY
and improvement than in any equal
sized city in the United States. In all
commercial cities ware house and rail-
way property is held at relatively high
figures, and it is an actual fact that this
class of property is held mnch higher in
the comparatively small towns like
Sioux City and Duluth than it is here in
St. Paul, where the very best location
of its class, on lower Fourth, Fifth and
Sixth streets, can be bought to-day for
s275 to 1850 per front foot. The same
class of property in Kansas City would
be alleged to be worth five times that
sum. On Eighth street, within a block
of the Hotel Ryan, property which must
soon rate among the best for retail and
Office-building purposes can be bought
for $500 per front fOOt-would be called
cheap in Kansas City at $4,000. On
Fourth street, in the very heart of the
wholesale district, where massive
blocks, equal to any for like purposes in
America, rise on almost every foot of
available space. and where are the finest
railway Office and headquarters build
ingS in the West, property is for sale at
$3.50 per front foot. Like property in
Chicago would be worth $1,000 to 5000
per front foot.
What has been said with reference to
business property holds equally good as
to residence and outside localities. The
most slightly place in all st. Paul, on
Dayton'S bluff, within fifteen to eight
cen minutes walk of the union depot
and heart of the wholesale district, may
be had at $50 and $50 per front foot. The
price, compared with like property in
other cities of equal size, is absurd. On
Summit avenue, destined to be the fin
est residence street in this whole coun-
try, while the solidly built-up portion
has advanced to seemingly full value, a
few minutes drive will bring one to a
pO0-feet-wide avenue and boulevard
combined, which will be lined with
palaces within five years; and yet de-
sirable sites may be obtained at 500 per
front foot.
Outlying acres that are held at $3.50
to $500 would be considered cheap in
Kansas City at $1,000 to $1,000; and if
situated in Chicago would following
Washington avenue, for instance) be
business property worth from $500 to
$500 per front foot.
These illustrations are given merely
to prove the actuality of st. PauPs con-
SerVatism and show that nothing in the
nature of a real 'boom" has as yet
cursed this city.
To these conditions st. Paul owes
greatly, perhaps wholly, its present
prosperity. Capital is not afraid to
place its surplus here after it has once
Investigated. To-day it is employing